KU Entrepreneurial Ecosystem October 2016

ENTREPRENEURSHIP ECOSYSTEM AT KU

School Business

BTBC

KUIC

• Leveraged what KU already had

• Business School

• Built Assets • BTBC Incubator • KUIC

• End Result • KU moved from a Maintainer

to a Builder • Creating an Evolving

Ecosystem

KU CENTER FOR ENTREPRENEURSHIP

• Develop entrepreneurial mindset among all students • Help students launch and grow businesses • Provide clinical application opportunities to cement learning • Contribute economically and socially to the

community/region

Funded by US Dept. of Commerce - 1 of 40 UCs; $545K over 5 years

STUDENT INTEREST IN ENTR GROWS

4

0

50

100

150

200

250

300

350

400

450

500

Fall 2011 Spring2012

Fall 2012 Spring2013

Fall 2013 Spring2014

Fall 2014 Spring2015

Fall 2015 Spring2016

337 348 311

335 299

397 413

469 488

421

900+ Entrepreneurship Enrollees in Past AY

Study abroad trip to Israel

Jan 2016

ENTR Cert @ Ft Riley

April 2016

ENTR Minor

approved April 2016

KC Techweek Sept 2015

GEW The Woz Nov 2015

Startup School 1.0 Nov 2015

Morris Business

Plan Competition

Dec 2015

Startup School 2.0

March 2016

Morris Business

Plan Competition

May 2016

EDA grant renewed July 2015

Reached 10 yrs, 5K enrollees,

100 JHC clients May 2015

KUCE SINCE 2015…

• Applying classroom learning to real world practice

• Collect experiences in different industries, management approaches

• Acquire the tool kit to solve any business challenge

• Student business accelerator launched 2012 – Provides resources and access critical to startup launch

success: space, education, mentoring, access to capital for student new ventures

– Located on campus at BTBC – Currently 12 companies in residence

• Drone radar systems, dyslexic student learning aids, less invasive spinal implants, cohort building apps to increase university retention, tech clothing, fin tech, for hire student programmers….

ENTREPRENEURSHIP AT FORT RILEY

• Expansion of current Certificate in Entrepreneurship Program - 2016 – 3 classes, 6 credits, delivered on

post – Comprehensive business plan

final deliverable – Soldiers students in regular Army,

families and exiting soldiers – In state tuition rates apply, Army

benefits available – Build to 30 student soldiers/class

8

INCUBATOR SPACE - BTBC

• Opened in 2010 • Specialized Facilities

– 85,000 sq ft of space for companies

• KU Connections to attract companies to KS

• Startup Assistance – Entrepreneurs-in–

Residence – Business analyst intern

program

– Interim management

Unique Partnership Among KU, City of Lawrence, Douglas County, Kansas Dept of Commerce, and Lawrence Chamber

Growing KU Companies in Kansas…

BTBC GROWS IN 2014

• Added 30,000 sq feet Phase II in 2014 • KUIC takes space

• 75% occupancy • 34 companies that employ 180 people with over $10M

payroll

KUIC is the Commercialization Arm of the University of Kansas

KU INNOVATION AND COLLABORATION

• Established in 2008 as 501(c)3 serving all campuses Tech Transfer

• Additional functionality added in 2011 Corporate Partnerships (3

FTE by 2013) Industry Agreements (2 FTE) Entrepreneurship

Programming for Faculty

WE HAVE IT ALL…BUT DO WE?

We have it all!

• Mandate from KU strategic plan

• Strong education programs for students

• Modern incubator space

• Expanded commercialization effort

So why only a few startup companies per year?

• Faculty interest?

• Lack of knowledge?

• Too many hurdles?

ARE FACULTY THE PROBLEM?

• Two companies formed in 2015 (license)

• 11 additional companies incorporated – Pending a license – Wait and See Mode

• Faculty Interest NOT the Problem

WHAT ARE THE BARRIERS?

• Ask the customer! – Too many people “helping” – What is a license?? – What is a business plan?? – Too much money!

THE PROBLEM IS US…

ENTREPRENEURS@KU

• Education: Startup School@KU • Funding: Proof of Concept Fund • Mentoring: iCorp @KU (Pending) • Easy License: Swift Startup License Transparent and supportive infrastructure to assist faculty

and staff in starting companies.

• Goal: accelerate the startup process and increase chances of success.

• Format: 6 – 2 hr sessions based on the lean startup model

• End deliverable: POC application – Leverage existing program – Develop idea inside KU while further

developing the business concept • Collaboration: KU School of

Business – Curriculum, Teaching

GUEST LECTURERS

• Experiences Entrepreneurs Speak on Session Topics

• Alumni and Friends of KU

– Successful Startups – Wilton Risenhoover – UCLA Venture Fund Investment Committee Chair - ’93 CS

– Generating Ideas – Brian McClendon – Uber – ’86 EE

– Building Product – Davyeon Ross, ShotTracker, Inc.

– Financing – Trish Brasted, Wichita Technology Corproation; Jason Tatge, Farmobile LLC

– Growth – Toby Rush, EyeVerify – Operations – Jeff Stowell, Royal

Street Ventures, ‘97 Political Science; ‘01 Law

• Fall 2015 – 26 faculty attendees

• Spring 2016 – 86 students & faculty attended

• Fall 2016 – Add working sessions/mentors – 175 students & faculty

NEXT: PROOF OF CONCEPT FUNDING

• Faculty POC Fund – NOT a research grant – Technology

development – Based on SS@KU; Must have a

provisional filed – $40K for 6 month project – Awarded 5 – Funded from royalties

• Student POC Fund – KU Catalyst Companies – <$10K for 3 months – Broader scope – Awarded 6 – Funded philanthropically

ICORP@KU

• Goal: Prepare researchers on How to Start a Company leveraging iCorp

• Team Based Approach – Principal investigator – Entrepreneurial lead – Mentor

• Collaboration: School of Business, Alumni Association • Customer Discovery: industry engagement; talking to customers,

partners, and competitors; • Launch – upon funding

LAUNCH: SWIFT STARTUP LICENSE

• What: Simple, ready-to-use license agreement for KU start-up companies

• Goal: Stimulate creation of new KU companies through the provision of transparent licensing term

• Terms: – back-end loaded deal structure – no upfront payments or annual fees – no past patent costs (up to $20K) – Single, low flat patent royalty rate – Success fee at the time of an exit/liquidation

event. • Eligibility

– Complete the SS@KU program – Faculty company founder – Business lead identified (CEO)

PARTNER OUTSIDE KU: ACCELERATORS & NETWORKS

Group of Entrepreneurs Who Help Build High-Growth Companies in the Midwest

• KU a Pipeline University Partner • The next step for KU entrepreneurs

– Build the Company – Build their Network – Mentorship

PARTNER OUTSIDE KU: FUNDING

Proof of Concept EDA i6 Proposal

Angels Mid-America Angels Women’s Capital Connection Wichita Technology Ventures

Seed Stage Fund Royal Street Ventures iiM KCRising Firebrand Ventures

Series A

LESSONS LEARNED

• Asset Mapping – Start at the Business School – Don’t reinvent the wheel

• Don’t even think you can do it alone – Partnership is the Secret Sauce

• Identify barriers realizing they may be created by you!

• Create internal programs first – then partner outside to fill ecosystem holes

THANKS & ROCK CHALK

Julie Seward Nagel, PhD jrnagel@ku.edu 785.864.9004

www.kuic.ku.edu